windfall tax

plural windfall taxes

1. abbreviationellipsisEllipsis of windfall profits tax, a higher tax rate on profits from sudden gains (“profiteering”) in certain industries.

   The windfall tax was the political glue in the 1980 deal to get Washington out of the business of setting oil prices. Producers were freed from cumbersome, costly controls, while the public was assured a portion of any gain from OPEC-led price gouging.

   1988 April 23, “Time for the Windfall Tax to Fall”, in The New York Times, →ISSN

   1 more example

   Companies at the centre of the global grain trade have enjoyed a record bonanza amid soaring food prices around the world, raising concerns of profiteering and speculation in global food markets that could put staples beyond the reach of the poorest, and prompting calls for a windfall tax.

   2022 August 23, Fiona Harvey, “Record profits for grain firms amid food crisis prompt calls for windfall tax”, in The Guardian